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There is no straightforward answer as to whether a "single cell" is irreducibly complex. Which cell are we talking about? Human mitochondria do not survive without their genome, but those of Cryptosporidium do persist without it. The Minimal Genome Project, led by biotechnologist Craig Venter, concluded with the creation of Mycoplasma laboratorium, the result of removing non-essential genes from Mycoplasma genitalium. This minimum cell had 382 genes.

Are 382 genes the minimum number of genes required for life then? No. That number refers to the total number of genes necessary for a particular organism, which happened to be Mycoplasma. Iterative trials of removing genes will reveal different numbers of essential genes for different organisms. Primates will require a high number of essential genes, whilst archaea could survive with fewer genes.

Regarding the transition from RNA-only to RNA-protein world, peptides function as cofactors for some ribozymes. Amino acids and peptides are known to have existed in the prebiotic environment and have been found in space (glycine has been found in comets, along with other 70 amino acids).

From Scientific American.

A New Route In the presence of phosphate, the raw materials for nucleobases and ribose first form 2-aminooxazole, a molecule that contains part of a sugar and part of a C or U nucleobase. Further reactions yield a full ribose-base block and then a full nucleotide. The reactions also produce “wrong” combinations of the original molecules, but after exposure to ultraviolet rays, only the “right” versions—the nucleotides—survive.

This answer is not complete, I will add more information and provide citations in the future.

There is no straightforward answer as to whether a "single cell" is irreducibly complex. Which cell are we talking about? Human mitochondria do not survive without their genome, but those of Cryptosporidium do persist without it. The Minimal Genome Project, led by biotechnologist Craig Venter, concluded with the creation of Mycoplasma laboratorium, the result of removing non-essential genes from Mycoplasma genitalium. This minimum cell had 382 genes.

Are 382 genes the minimum number of genes required for life then? No. That number refers to the total number of genes necessary for a particular organism, which happened to be Mycoplasma. Iterative trials of removing genes will reveal different numbers of essential genes for different organisms. Primates will require a high number of essential genes, whilst archaea could survive with fewer genes.

Regarding the transition from RNA-only to RNA-protein world, peptides function as cofactors for some ribozymes. Amino acids and peptides are known to have existed in the prebiotic environment and have been found in space (glycine has been found in comets, along with other 70 amino acids).

Regarding the formation of nucleotides, from Scientific American.

A New Route In the presence of phosphate, the raw materials for nucleobases and ribose first form 2-aminooxazole, a molecule that contains part of a sugar and part of a C or U nucleobase. Further reactions yield a full ribose-base block and then a full nucleotide. The reactions also produce “wrong” combinations of the original molecules, but after exposure to ultraviolet rays, only the “right” versions—the nucleotides—survive.

This answer is not complete, I will add more information and provide citations in the future.

There is no straightforward answer as to whether a "single cell" is irreducibly complex. Which cell are we talking about? Human mitochondria do not survive without their genome, but those of Cryptosporidium do persist without it. The Minimal Genome Project, led by biotechnologist Craig Venter, concluded with the creation of Mycoplasma laboratorium, the result of removing non-essential genes from Mycoplasma genitalium. This minimum cell had 382 genes.

Are 382 genes the minimum number of genes required for life then? No. That number refers to the total number of genes necessary for a particular organism, which happened to be Mycoplasma. Iterative trials of removing genes will reveal different numbers of essential genes for different organisms. Primates will require a high number of essential genes, whilst archaea could survive with fewer genes.

Regarding the transition from RNA-only to RNA-protein world, peptides function as cofactors for some ribozymes. Amino acids and peptides are known to have existed in the prebiotic environment and have been found in space (glycine has been found in comets, along with other 70 amino acids). Jack Szostak has been working on the prebiotic synthesis of nucleotides, and actually found a exergonic condition for their synthesis.

This answer is not complete, I will add more information and provide citations in the future.

There is no straightforward answer as to whether a "single cell" is irreducibly complex. Which cell are we talking about? Human mitochondria do not survive without their genome, but those of Cryptosporidium do persist without it. The Minimal Genome Project, led by biotechnologist Craig Venter, concluded with the creation of Mycoplasma laboratorium, the result of removing non-essential genes from Mycoplasma genitalium. This minimum cell had 382 genes.

Are 382 genes the minimum number of genes required for life then? No. That number refers to the total number of genes necessary for a particular organism, which happened to be Mycoplasma. Iterative trials of removing genes will reveal different numbers of essential genes for different organisms. Primates will require a high number of essential genes, whilst archaea could survive with fewer genes.

Regarding the transition from RNA-only to RNA-protein world, peptides function as cofactors for some ribozymes. Amino acids and peptides are known to have existed in the prebiotic environment and have been found in space (glycine has been found in comets, along with other 70 amino acids).

From Scientific American.

A New Route In the presence of phosphate, the raw materials for nucleobases and ribose first form 2-aminooxazole, a molecule that contains part of a sugar and part of a C or U nucleobase. Further reactions yield a full ribose-base block and then a full nucleotide. The reactions also produce “wrong” combinations of the original molecules, but after exposure to ultraviolet rays, only the “right” versions—the nucleotides—survive.

This answer is not complete, I will add more information and provide citations in the future.

There is no straightforward answer as to whether a "single cell" is irreducibly complex. Which cell are we talking about? Human mitochondria do not survive without their genome, but those of Cryptosporidium do persist without it. The Minimal Genome Project, led by biotechnologist Craig Venter, concluded with the creation of Mycoplasma laboratorium, the result of removing non-essential genes from Mycoplasma genitalium. This minimum cell had 382 genes.

Are 382 genes the minimum number of genes required for life then? No. That number refers to the total number of genes necessary for a particular organism, which happened to be Mycoplasma. Iterative trials of removing genes will reveal different numbers for different organisms. Primates will require a high number of essential genes, whilst archaea could survive with fewer genes.

Regarding the transition from RNA-only to RNA-protein world, peptides function as cofactors for some ribozymes. Amino acids and peptides are known to have existed in the prebiotic environment and have been found in space (glycine has been found in comets, along with other 70 amino acids). Jack Szostak has been working on the prebiotic synthesis of nucleotides, and actually found a exergonic condition for their synthesis.

This answer is not complete, I will add more information and provide citations in the future.

There is no straightforward answer as to whether a "single cell" is irreducibly complex. Which cell are we talking about? Human mitochondria do not survive without their genome, but those of Cryptosporidium do persist without it. The Minimal Genome Project, led by biotechnologist Craig Venter, concluded with the creation of Mycoplasma laboratorium, the result of removing non-essential genes from Mycoplasma genitalium. This minimum cell had 382 genes.

Are 382 genes the minimum number of genes required for life then? No. That number refers to the total number of genes necessary for a particular organism, which happened to be Mycoplasma. Iterative trials of removing genes will reveal different numbers of essential genes for different organisms. Primates will require a high number of essential genes, whilst archaea could survive with fewer genes.

Regarding the transition from RNA-only to RNA-protein world, peptides function as cofactors for some ribozymes. Amino acids and peptides are known to have existed in the prebiotic environment and have been found in space (glycine has been found in comets, along with other 70 amino acids). Jack Szostak has been working on the prebiotic synthesis of nucleotides, and actually found a exergonic condition for their synthesis.

This answer is not complete, I will add more information and provide citations in the future.